The doors of Wuhan closed behind them. This Thursday, around 4:30 p.m., several minutes early, the last Air France flight from the Chinese city where the coronavirus appeared, landed at Roissy Charles de Gaulle airport. On board the plane, French people relieved to have left a megalopolis now locked and Chinese who also left the area. Authorities have placed the city under quarantine for 10 hours (local time), impossible for its residents to get out.
"It was this plane or nothing. Pierre crosses the hall of Terminal 2 E, baggage in hand, hurrying. He has just spent a week in Wuhan on a business trip. "We should have stayed three weeks, but the company made sure to repatriate us," he says, the surgical mask just removed from the mouth. He works in the semiconductor sector and had to go to the Chinese company Huawei. "Over there it was war, when we left, soldiers were arriving at the airport," says this 62-year-old man from Seine-et-Marne, drawn but relieved.
"We had no control, it's a bit light"
In China, the coronavirus epidemic has killed 18 people. In Wuhan, a city of 11 million inhabitants, according to the authorities, 500 cases have already been identified. In the hope of stemming the evil, the government has taken a radical step and prohibited any departure by train, plane or bus from Wuhan. Residents are trapped in their city on the eve of the long Chinese New Year holiday.
If Pierre is happy to set foot on French soil, he is worried about his health and that of his loved ones. "We had no control, it's a bit light," he laments. I have no symptoms but I will not wait to have them to call 15, explains this future grandfather. I have small children, my daughter is pregnant, I don't want to take any risks. "
VIDEO. French from Wuhan: "We left 30 minutes before the airport closed"
Behind him, a dozen Chinese passengers hidden behind their masks parade and refuse requests from journalists, many of whom have come. Apart from the media unrest, only small prevention posters mention the coronavirus at the airport. They recommend in particular to travelers coming from Wuhan to wear a surgical mask, to use disposable handkerchiefs and to contact the Samu in case of symptoms.
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"We had to fill out an information sheet when we got here and we left our contact details," said Philippe and Véronique, who were not subject to any special checks. "There are temperature controls at the start, but no special instructions".
On the spot, "everything is closed, the stores robbed"
The couple, who have lived and worked in Wuhan since July, will not go to a doctor. "We know the symptoms, we will go if we have a fever," says Véronique, who nevertheless refuses to take off her mask. "It's to protect you," she says, laughing at the journalists, happy to finally be in France. "All French people want to leave," they say in unison.
But some did not have a chance. "We have friends who are stranded," says Véronique. They haven't had time to get a plane ticket, but they will try their luck by trying to leave Wuhan and take a flight from Shanghai. On the spot, they describe a “critical” situation. “The helicopters were on patrol when we left. Everything is closed, the stores are robbed. There are no more vegetables, there are no food shortages, but at the airport people have remained rather calm. "
Their flight is far from being full. "There was nobody because apparently the Chinese canceled their flights. They were afraid of not being able to return home, ”explains Pierre. Pierre and Véronique do not know when they will be able to return. “We don't have a return flight. We will have to wait until the end of the quarantine, we will not have the choice to come back for work. "
